By Martin M Muthu csc –
Readings: Phil 1: 18-26; Lk 14: 1, 7-11
In today’s readings, I was inspired by the words and dedication of St. Paul where he says: “Christ will be glorified in my body, whether by life or by death.” These words indicate the love of St. Paul for Jesus. He was keen on living the life of Christ to encourage others and was even ready to die for Christ. His invitation to glorify Jesus through our body is more challenging in present times. We are called to prepare ourselves even to face death, through which we bring glory to God. Each one of us is called to offer ourselves fully and say like St. Paul: “For to me life is for Christ and death is gain.”
Can we say that? We need to be honest in examining our lives with that question before the Lord. What does it mean to ‘live Christ’? How do we live Christ? For me, to live Christ means to live in union with him, so that he becomes my all in all. I am called to magnify God through everything I do, both in the context of my family and community where I live. To live Christ also means to let go of my selfish desires and serve others for the sake of Jesus.
This involves a lot of sacrifice, acceptance, and above all, humility. Meditating upon the second question: how to live Christ, I understood that we can live Christ by making it as our constant aim in all that we do.
Sometimes, in our ministry, we get disappointed when something good is taken away from us or not given to us. But if we are truly living for Christ, we will be able to come through any tragedy without despair, because Jesus cannot be taken away from us.
So, it is always good to evaluate our initiatives, actions, service, and ministry by asking: Is Christ at the centre? Is he my all in all? Whether we live or die, we must first be known as children of God. Where do we want to go after our death? If it is to go to heaven, then we need to live the life of Christ, for Christ. In this way, we too can join with St. Paul and honestly say: “For to me life is for Christ and death is gain.”